Hard power over its disputed territories: Looks like the Chengdu J-10, a multi-role all-weather fighter aircraft known to some as the ‘Vigorous Dragon’ has been deployed to keep watch over Tibet. Significantly, or paradoxically, in the year of the dragon.

Fighter planes take off from military airfield in the Tibet Autonomous Region, southwest China, Jan. 31, 2012. An air force stationed in Tibet started its first flight in the Year of the Dragon Tuesday. Photo: CNSPHOTO